No Matter What You Are
by Ally Marton
Summary: After meeting the Young Justice, Garfield's life was changed forever. He thought it was for the better, but now... his home, parents, everything was gone. Will the superheroes of the world be able to find the green boy in time?
1. The Boy who could be a Beast

Ever since Miss Martian had saved his life, he had felt different. His mom had said it was the recovery after the transfusion, but he realized later it was more than that. Much more.

At first his mom has said how his color was a little strange, a bit… green. But it was just a subtle tint, it must have been the lighting, the shadows, something else. But it wasn't. Within two months after the transfusion, Garfield Logan had completely turned green.

Marie panicked, she wasn't concerned that Miss Martian had hurt him, but _her son was green_. It didn't change too much, but she hid him from visitors, kept him at home instead of coming to town with her. What both excited and worried Garfield was when she called his father home. The week in waiting for him to return, she kept talking to herself, kept trying to reassure them both. "It can't be permanent. I'm sure we can get rid of it. Maybe I can call Megan for help."

When his father came home and saw him, the first thing he did was laugh at how ridiculous his son looked. Mom had told him about Garfield's accident long ago, so at least it made… _some _sense what was going on. But after Marie started to protest, looked at him with desperate, helpless eyes, he caved and turned serious, promising to search for help.

They had to be subtle, of course. They weren't about to advertise their son's predicament for the media to eat up. But Garfield didn't worry, his dad had connections with lots of doctors and scientists, they'd find someone eventually.

Besides, he was _green_! So cool!

But what he found out later, was even _cooler_.

It was by accident, he didn't know how he did it, but he and Monkey were playing up in his room, once again hiding from the world. But and he was wondering, what would it be like to be a monkey? What would it be like to have all that fur, that tail, those teeth, that agility? And suddenly… suddenly he _was_.

Monkey had screeched in surprise, and Gar could _understand _him! Testing out his own voice, he vocalized what he thinks happened. Monkey merely made a somewhat mean observation about humans being too weird (and hairless) for their own good, but gleefully accepted that now his favorite human could play with him like the other monkeys. Green or otherwise.

After they played, Garfield changed back without meaning to. But immediately, once he heard his mother opening the door, coming back from the clinic, he vaulted down the steps. "Mom! Mom! Look at what I can do, look!"

When he shrunk down into a little green monkey, his mother accidentally dropped her medical equipment. His dad hurried into the house, asking Marie what was wrong. Quickly focusing on what it was like being human, Garfield forced himself to change back. "Dad! I can turn into a monkey!"

Both parents stayed quiet, then shared a look.

Doctor and scientist friends of the family were seeing Garfield within the week.

Garfield still didn't mind, most of them didn't really know what to do anyway, and Marie grew protective whenever they wanted to… test certain theories they may have concocted. But with the following weeks, Garfield did learn more. He could turn into more than just monkey, he could also turn into a wildebeest, gazelle, three different birds, and when he concentrated really hard, a cheetah. Though they were always, always green. Just like him. One day after showing his dad the latest form, the man smiled and commented, "You know Garfield, I bet if you put your mind to it, you could become any animal in the world. A boy who can turn into any beast he thinks of!"

Garfield took to this idea, and soon began reading up any and every encyclopedia available to test such a theory. Some forms were difficult, especially if he didn't know much about them, but he was making amazing progress. His mother became worried when certain traits started staying, like sharper teeth and his ears being pointier, his arms were also getting furrier, less human like. But he was still her Garfield, and that was all that mattered.

It was a weird and confusing time, but to Garfield it was amazing. He was getting everything he ever wanted; he was becoming a super hero! He could do things no one else could! Even his parents, worried for him as they were, couldn't help but feel enthusiastic for his new found gifts.

But then that all ended, and Garfield's life began to spiral out of control.

Another scientist came; one that his dad felt would be very promising in helping them understand a possible cure for Garfield's skin color. He hadn't seen the man since his days at the university, but he trusted him. The man was shocked when he first saw the eight-year-old boy, like all the people who'd been let in on the 'secret'.

But he quickly became interested. He asked Garfield lots of questions, even more questions then the other scientists. He watched Garfield all the time, tried to ask even weirder questions when his parents were busy. When he transformed, did he still think the same? Could he turn into something dangerous? Had he ever tried to destroy things in his form? Was he a telepath like his 'blood donor'? Did he think he could take down people in his other forms?

Garfield began to feel uneasy, he didn't like this man, he wasn't like the other scientists. Monkey agreed with him, he said he smelled 'like scared animals'*. Even though the man told him not to, Garfield told his mom and dad about the questions. That night, after he was sent up to bed, he heard them talking downstairs. He imagined himself as a mouse and quickly crept over to the door, only catching small parts of their conversations.

"… if we sent him…"

"Absolutely not! What are you…"

"…Bialya collegues, they want to see…"

"NO! How could you… everything we've been through!"

"We trusted you with this-"

"Your son is a scientific phenomenon… next level in military biogenetic warefare-"

"NO!"

"Get out! OUT!"

Garfield crept back into his room and morphed back, watching as his parents through out the strange scientist, who was shouting at them. Claiming he'd be back, that they hadn't heard the last of him, they couldn't get away, he'd take Garfield. Feeling somewhat worried, for the first time in awhile, Garfield watched until his car was gone then wuietly padded downstairs.

When he got to the kitchen, his mother was crying, and his dad was holding her protectively. "Mom…? Dad…?"

Marie's head shot up, and with a cry she ran to him, clutching him tightly to her chest, reassuring herself as she rubbed his back that he was really there.

Garfield's mom was never like this, she was always strong. But now she was sad, she was crying. Because of what he'd become, it was somehow not good, it wasn't as cool as he thought. "I'm sorry mom…"

His dad came over and knelt down, looking him hard in the eyes. "You don't ever have to be sorry for who you are Garfield. We love you no matter what color you are, or what animals you can turn into." His mother nodded, still crying. He wished she'd stop crying, it was making him cry. And he was eight, he was too old to be crying!

Marie carried him up to his room, laying in bed with him until he slept soundly.

The very next morning, his parents told him that they were leaving. Right away.

"But why?" Garfield argued. He knew it had to do with the scientist, but he didn't understand, what could a scientist do? "I like where we are, why do we need to go to the states?"

Marie hurried around his room, packing his things. She knew which toys he'd want most, which clothes he liked to wear and what old school things he might want. "We're going to visit a friend of mine, do you remember Rita Farr? You were just a baby last you saw her?"

"But why am _I _going? You said I shouldn't let other people see me!" Which he thought was preposterous, but used the argument for the sake of trying to stay.

Something in what he said though bothered Marie, because she stopped packing and looked back at him, her strong eyes filled with painful resolve. "Gar… its, it will be better for you to be in the states right now. We should have taken you back years ago, but we wanted to continue our work-"

They both heard the sound of an approaching vehicle and looked outside. Gar's dad had run into town a little while ago to find some people to watch the sanctuary. Garfield felt a bit of worry as his father vaulted out of the car and raced into the house, calling their names. Garfield and Marie met him at the top of the stairs, he looked like he'd been running, or was at least really flustered.

"Grab whatever's packed, we can't stay any longer."

Garfield felt alarmed as he saw the panic rise in his mothers face. "But what about-"

"There's no time! Garfield, grab that bag from your mother and go to the jeep, now!"

Scared by his father's tone, the boy quickly complied. But as soon as he got out there, he realized he left one of his favorite games in the new clinic. Rushing over to the barn, he searched frantically. He could hear his parents, calling out, not knowing where he went. He'd be there in just a minute! He just needed to find- there! Crawling under the table to reach the console item, he quickly stashed it in his pocket and hurried out the door, his parents were no longer calling for him. "Mom! Dad! I'm over here!"

He didn't see his parents near the jeep, and he rushed up to the house, worried they were mad at him. He didn't see the second car parked behind the house. "Mom! I'm ready to go! I just needed to…"

Garfield froze in the doorway, first looking at his parents being held at gunpoint by a Bialian soldier, panic written all over their faces. Hearing a scuffle to his left, towards the stairs, he looked scientist who made him feel so uneasy, who was rushing down the stairs, having been looking for him. Garfield felt himself shiver in fear as the man smiled at him, not at all looking friendly. In fact, he looked scary. Very, very scary.

"Hello, Garfield."

***For the record, I'm pretty sure I read somewhere animals tend to give off chemicals that they can smell off one another. The common one is fear, but I think it works with anger and… physical attration as well. **

**So, I couldn't get this idea out of my head, and even if it differs from the show, I had to make it. Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	2. Protecting those you Love

**Thank you for everyone's reviews thus far. And just so you know, I listen and consider all of your thoughts, but for now this part of the story is already planned out. But as for the future… who's to know?**

Garfield took a step backwards, the look on the scientist's face telling him they were in trouble. Big trouble. "Mom…?" He called hesitantly, wanting reassurance, _needing _reassurance. Was this why they were running? Why his parents were trying to leave? Was this his fault? If he hadn't gotten the game, would this not be happening?

His mom's words did not reassure him, though. "Garfield, run! Get out of here right n-" she was cut off as the soldier hit her head with the butt of his gun. She fell towards the ground, his dad narrowly catching her in time. She was still awake, but there was blood coming from her hair line. She was bleeding! She was hurt!

"Mom!" Garfield rushed over, trying to get to his mom, protect his parents, but the soldier suddenly swung the gun at him, yelling at him to stay back. His eyes were wild as they looked at him, suspicious. Fearful. The eight year old stopped halfway there, eyes hypnotically locked at the gun trained to his chest. Now Garfield knew why his mom didn't want others to see him. They were scared of him, _him_.

A firm hand landed on his shoulder, holding him in place. He turned to face the scientist, fear towards the man coming back in full force. He looked the way the lionesses did when they took down a gazelle. Victorious. Satisfied.

Hungry.

"Your coming with me Garfield."

The green skinned boy tried to tug out of the hard grip that was steering him towards the doorway, but wasn't very successful. The scientist muttered angrily at him, trying to say things that were supposed to be calming, assuring, but weren't at all. He looked back to his parents, afraid. "Mom! Dad!" He finally got his shoulder loose, but before he could return to them, the scientist lunged and grabbed his arm, still dragging him away, his angry words getting less and less comforting. "MOM! DAD!"

"GARFILED!" His mother cried out, trying to get up and follow, but his dad was holding her down.

The scientist wretched him angrily out the door, looking back at the soldier. "Take care of them, already! We don't have all day!"

_Take care of them, take care of them, take care of them- _Garfield knew what that meant, he'd heard it all the time when the soldiers snuck into the villages nearby. He knew what 'take care of them' meant. "NO!" He cried out, watching as his parents huddled together, the gunman turned from Garfield, facing to gun towards his family. "NO!" He felt angry, he felt scared, he felt scared_ for them_! He had to protect them! He had to be stronger than this man and protect them! But what protects? _What protects_? Then he thought of it, back in his zoology book upstairs, on top of the suitcase in his room.

The scientist released him with a cry as the green skin child morphed. His skin turned into heavy fur, his mouth growing into a long canine snout. Landing on all fours, he growled threateningly at the man who was attacking his parents, who was going to… going to…

No, he was _not _going to. Not if Garfield could stop him!

Snarling savagely the dog ran into the house, right at the man. He had witnessed the boy's transformation, and his eyes rolled white with fear as the giant Siberian wolf launched at him. "Back! Back you monster!" he cried in Bialian, turning the gun to face the changeling. He managed to fire one shot, easily missing the startled wolf, before Garfield's dad turned and punched him down, throwing the gun across the room in the process. The soldier stayed where he fell, knocked out cold by his father.

"You brat!"

Garfield swiveled his head to see the scientist had run in and witnessed the whole thing. The wolf eyes caught him catching sight of the gun across the floor. Swiftly, before the scientist could get close, Garfield ran in front of it, growling viciously. He won't let him, he won't!

The scientist stared hard at him, furious. "Is this what you truly are, Garfield? Nothing more than an animal that's going to tear my throat out?" Garfield stopped growling, surprised. No, he didn't want to tear this man's throat out! He wanted to… he just wanted to protect his family! "Are you a mindless animal now?" He pressed. "Are you going to bite and tear people apart, now that you're a dangerous wolf?"

No! Garfield didn't want to do that! He was a boy! He was just a boy, he didn't want to hurt… the wolf changed back to the small eight year old, his eyes wide with horror. Oh crap, he had changed back! He needed to be a wolf! He couldn't fight the man as just Garfield.

The man smiled that oily, not friendly smile, chuckling darkly at Garfield's terrified expression. Before he could take a step closer though, an ominous _cha-chink! _sounded behind the boy. The man froze, his smile gone. Garfield turned, afraid it was the soldier, and found his mom training the rifle at the scientist's heart.

"How dare you." Garfield felt scared again, his mom never talked like that, and the blood was still dripping down her face, just past her eyes. "How dare you try to hurt my boy!"

"Mom?" Garfield jumped slightly when her hand shot out, thrusting him behind her, keeping him out of reach of the bad man.

"Go ahead Marie, shoot me." The man smirked cynically at her. "Shoot a man right in front of your little boy."

Shoot him? His mom was going to _shoot _him? Like the soldier was going to shoot her? "Mom?" He asked again, his voice cracking slightly.

"Marie!" Garfield turned to see his father haul the soldier into the coats closet, slamming the door behind him. "Stop!"

"He's going to take Garfield, Rick!" She cocked the gun again, but the scientist only grinned wider, darker. "He's going to take him, _experiment _on him! I won't let that happen!"

"It _won't _happen," Rick walked over, glaring angrily at the man who was upsetting his family. Garfield clutched his mother's pant leg tighter, he didn't know what to do, he didn't know how to help. This was all happening because the scientist didn't like him. Didn't like who he _was_. Begin green wasn't so cool anymore. Rick placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder, grabbing the gun from her trembling arms, keeping it trained on the man. "You and Garfield head to the jeep. Don't grab anything else, just go!"

Marie, now having a way to get her son out of there, grabbed the confused boy's hand and bolted out the back door. Garfield looked back at their house, the home he had grown up in. From the trees he could see Monkey, screeching questioningly at him, wondering what was going on. "Garfield." He turned back to look at his mom, the blood still seeping down her chin, it made him want to cry.

"Mommy," He hadn't said mommy since he was _seven_, "is this my fault?"

His mom looked even sadder when he asked. As she leaned down and picked him up, setting him in the seat, she hugged him tightly, protectively. "Listen to me Garfield Mark Logan, this is _not _your fault. You have done _nothing _wrong, _nothing_."

Garfiled sniffled slightly as she hurried to buckle him and climb in the other door. _But because of me, they almost- _He and Marie jumped as the _BANG! _of a gunshot echoed through the area. "DAD!" He called out. Where was he? Did he get shot? Why hadn't he stayed and protected his dad?

But then Rick was racing out of the house, no gun in hand, jumping in and yelling at his wife to drive, drive, drive! Marie didn't have to hear anymore, and suddenly the car was screeching out of the compound.

Nobody talked for fifteen whole minutes, just racing across the African plain. Garfield felt tears forming in his eyes again as he thought of all his toys, his animal friends, all left behind. Would they be alright? Would Monkey forgive him for leaving like this? Would he ever come back? He looked down at his green hands, his almost furry arms. He didn't want to be green anymore, he didn't want to be any animal he could think of, not if it meant losing his home.

His mother suddenly spoke up, eyes still scanning the road for any sign of other vehicle activity. "Rick, back at the house, did you-"

"No." He said brusquely, looking back at his son. "a shot to the knee. I didn't want him getting any ideas to follow us." His tone made it sound like he had wanted to do more, and it scared Garfield. His dad wouldn't kill someone, would he? Would his mom? All because of him?

"Where are we going?" Garfield asked suddenly. Were they still going to the states? How would they get there?

"I have a friend who will give us a ride down the river to an international airport." Marie quickly explained, her tone lighter than it had been, probably to make him feel better. It did. "They'll help up get to the states." Seeing her husband's panicked look, she added that the pass ports were in her pocket, she had grabbed them right as Hutchison (_the bad man_) had come in.

Rick stared at the ground zooming by, totally silent. "Marie, we can't go that route."

"What do you mean?" Marie looked at him in question, alarm only slightly cutting into her voice, trying to hide anything else painful from her son.

"Hutchison saw me grab the tickets, he was threatening reinforcements, if we go, there's a chance he'll find us."

Garfield looked between his parents in the front seat, feeling his stomach flip badly at the thought of having to face the man with the scary grin again. "Then what are we going to do…?"

**XXX**

Hutchison braced his leg, trying to stave off the continuous flow of blood. Damn Logan! He knew the man was too much of a bleeding heart to kill, but _hell_! Once he retrieved the boy, he'd be sure to give Rick his own bullet. Right between the eyes.

That boy, stupid brat. As bad as his father. The scientist had never actually watched the boy transform into anything other than a monkey, and when he turned into the wolf... it had been amazing, terrifying to watch. It was even more incredible to think what his… superiors could do with such a genetic miracle. He had worked for Bialya for seven years now, had been apart of some of their… less than ethnic projects. Garfield would be just the tool they needed to get a leg up on Qurac. If they could use his DNA the way he hypothesized, it could even win them the _country_.

Not to mention it would make him one of the greatest geneticists alive once he tore open and mapped out the boys morphing abilities, maybe even found ways to _clone _it. The profits he could make from such a thing were… immeasurable. Blast it, he needed to find that boy.

Hearing a vehicle pull up to the house, he couldn't help but grin. _It's about time_. If his muscle, that stupid Bialian soldier, didn't report back within a certain amount of time, another covert group was to come in and investigate. The soldiers filed in, taking note of the destruction and location of the scientist. "Help me!" He exclaimed angrily. "The buffoon is in the closet, they're getting away!"

"Tisk, tisk, Mr. Hutchison, that's no way to treat your 'rescuers'."

Hutchison felt his stomach turn to ice. _Oh hell no, don't tell me they sent-_

"_As a matter of fact, Hutchison, they _did_." _The scientist felt his face pale as he took in the thin frame that entered the room, the hood covering his overly large cranium, but you could still see the pink spony material of his brain peaking out.

"P'Simon." He breathed, a horrible knot forming in his insides.

"Very _good _little lab coat, it seems the Queen's faith in you wasn't _entirely _misplaced." He watched detached as the soldiers helped the unconscious man out of the closet and back to the car.

Hutchison turned to the soldiers that had surrounded him. "Don't just _stand _there, help me up! They're getting away!" The soldiers remained impassive, not even throwing out a hand. That cold, fearful part of Hutchison rose up again, telling him this wasn't going to end well. "What is this!"

"This, my dear scientist, is your farewell party." P'Simon smiled, Hutchison associated that smile to that of a cobra's when it was sinking it's teeth into its prey. Assured, sinister, and deadly.

Before he could say anything else, his mind was suddenly assaulted by a psychic blast. He watched for helpless seconds as everything that had just occurred replayed, P'Simon having a front seat to it all. A sudden dive backwards also showed him all the times spent with Garfield, every calculated thought he made of the small changeling playing at super speeds. Then, after it was finished, without so much as a good-bye his brain overloaded. There was a moment of intense pain, and then his brain just… burst.

Outwardly, the soldiers watched with some unease as the bleeding scientist fell mutely to the floor, blood draining from his ears and eyes.

"Thank you for your services, Mr. Hutchison. They were most… mundane." P'Simon glanced around the room, taking in the family photos, some breakfast food still uneaten at the table. He turned away and headed for the door. "Burn it to the ground, along with the barn and anything else you find."

Stepping out onto the front porch as his men got to work, P'Simon couldn't help but smile to himself. _It seems my little pretty has 'made' herself a friend. It might be the Queen who wants him, but tracking down the she- Martian's creation will be far more interesting than I expected. Hmm… _Hearing a screech, he turned to see a small monkey on the railing, facing him angrily. The monkey gnashed his teeth at him, thumping tiny paws against the rail. A soldier walking in with fuel watched as suddenly, the little creature flew off the rail, thrown against a nearby tree. It fell to the ground, unmoving. With a shudder he hurried past his superior, trying not to think about that crocodile smile.

**Poor Monkey…**

**My favorite YJ villains (and by villains I mean VILLINAS villains) are as follows: Klarion, Lex Luthor, and P'Simon. They are all creepy, all manipulative.**

**And all deadly.**

**For the record, the first chapters WILL be dark, it's just the nature of things until the YJ show up, so bear with me.**


	3. Out of the Frying Pan

Garfield gazed out of the window forlornly, wishing his parents were with him. The private jet was currently crossing over the Atlantic, above cloud level. There wasn't really anything to see, but the boy didn't care.

"You alright, Gar?"

The eight-year-old turned to see the co-pilot, a close family friend nicknamed Radar, glancing at him through the opening in the cockpit. Marie and called in every favor she could to get Radar and his buddy to take him across.

"_Please Radar!" Marie pushed Garfield forward, like the deal was already set. "I'm sorry I can't explain, I'm sorry this is so demanding and sudden, but you _need _to get my son to the states."_

"_Marie, _what _is going on, nothing ever shakes you!" Radar pointed an incredulous finger at him. "And… and he's green!"_

_Garfield could hear how much it was killing his mom to plea, to beg like this. "Radar, he's in danger and I can't… I can't _protect_ him."_

"I'm fine, Radar." Garfield sunk in his seat, self-conscious now that Radar was staring at him. "I'm just… thinking about mom and dad."

Radar nodded sympathetically, knowing how close the family was, unlike his own divorced version. "Don't worry, that boat ride will only put them a day or so behind you. And your mom's old actress friend's picking you up, Rita Farr, right?"

"Yeah." Garfield couldn't really be excited. He had no clue who Rita was, though he'd seen a picture, and his mom always told him stories about them when she was an actress. But he didn't want Rita whoever, he wanted Marie and Rick. He wanted his toys, Monkey. He wanted his home.

He thought back again, just like he had been for the last three hours, to his parents right before they left him with Radar.

"_But I wanna stay with you!" Garfield clutched his dad's shirt. He didn't cry, he was eight after all, and he'd cried too much already, but something in him was breaking, telling him he needed to stay with his parents. He didn't want to let them go away, not after seeing that scary scientist after them. And what if they got caught? What if he couldn't protect them? What if _he _got caught, and his mom and dad couldn't save _him_? "I'm supposed to go on the boat ride with you!"_

"_We're just being cautious Garfield." Rick knelt down to his son's level, looking him firmly in the eyes. "The fact is, you're our son, and these people know where we're going. They want you, not us. So as your parents, we want to protect you, Gar. You need to take this flight over, and then we'll meet up with you as soon as possible."_

"_What if I hid in the trunk? Could you take me then?" _

_Rick smiled, loving his son's innovativeness. "It'll only be a day more, much sooner than when I make my big safari trips, eh?"_

_Garfield bit his lip, looking down. He knew he couldn't change their minds, they were his parents after all, they were always right. Still… "I'll miss you, I-I don't want to leave you guys!"_

_Gar heard a strange sound and looked up, freezing at the sight. His dad was _crying_. Dads… dads don't cry, they are never supposed to cry. _His _dad never cried, even when they lost an animal or when Marie had had a miscarriage two years back. "Garfield…" The green boy thought it strange that, though he could see his dad's tears, he didn't _sound _like he was crying. "Garfield, I'm sorry this is happening. We don't want to leave you either." He wrapped his son in a huge bear hug; it felt so strong, so _safe_. "I promise, we'll be back with you as soon as possible."_

_He pulled up and stood back, not looking his son in the face as tears continued to stream. Still Garfield refused to cry, he couldn't cry, he had to be strong. His mommy and daddy needed him to be strong. And suddenly Marie was there too, and she was crying even harder than his dad. "We love you Garfield." Her voice broke at the end. "We love you so, so much. I'm sorry we need to leave you, I'm so sorry…"_

"_I-Its okay mom…" Garfield hugged her as tight as his dad did him. "I know you don't want to leave, but-but you'll come get me as soon as you can, I know that."_

_His mom was _sobbing_. His mom was sobbing and his father was crying too. She pulled away and kissed him on the forehead, tears still leaking. "We love you Garfield, you know we love you, don't you? No matter where you are, no matter what you are, we love you."_

"_Y-Yeah," Gar couldn't see his them anymore, his vision had gone blurry. "I love you guys too."_

_Marie stood shakily, gently turning and pushing Garfield towards Radar, who was waiting at the base of the jet. "Alright, hurry on. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll see one another again."_

Garfield sighed wearily, wishing he had something else to think about. No doubt about it, this had been a horrible day. _But maybe… _Garfield glanced over to the pilots, who were contacting the Fawcett City airport command center. _Maybe after Rita picks me up… and mom and dad come… _He smiled, seeing the first silver lining of the day. _Maybe I can go see Miss Martian and Kid Flash and Robin again! Yeah! I bet if anyone can help us, they can! _With this resolve, he turned back to the window, patiently waiting until they would pass over land, and eventually land in Fawcett International Aiport.

**XXX**

Marie was dreaming, she hadn't dreamed in a very long time. In the dream, she saw Garfield, surrounded on all sides by dark shadows that seemed to come out of a giant stream of light. She called out silently as her boy ran from the figments, shouting where he should run and trying to get to him so she could protect him. But in the end, a shadow grabbed him, a huge dark claw wrapping around his waist and dragging her baby towards the giant stream of light. She couldn't cry out to him, no matter how hard she tried, but she could hear him. "Mommy!" He started to cry in the shadow's grip, eyes both helplessly pleading and accusing to her very soul. "Mommy! Save me! Mommy!" The shadows started to chuckle, slamming their fists against the ground to produce loud bangs that startled her baby all the more. Reaching out a hand to him, she realized that _her hands _were now being wrapt with shadows, shadows that continued to drag her away. "Mommy!" He cried out again. "Mommy, mommy, MOMMY!"

"GARFIELD!" Marie started from her miserable sleep, gasping for air. A dream, a nightmare. She could still hear his desperate cries, the banging of the shadow fists… wait. She got up, realizing that banging was real. And she paled as she realized just what the banging was; above deck, there were shouts and gunfire.

Gunfire.

They'd been found.

"Rick!" She called frantically, realizing her husband wasn't in the small cabin with her. Rushing to the door, she found it blockaded from the outside. Someone wanted to keep her in, wanted to keep her away from the fighting. Protect her. "Rick, answer me!" She banged against the door, fighting to open the flimsy doorway blocked by several boat tools. "Rick!"

The gunfire was slowing down, and within a few seconds more, ceasing all together. Marie stopped pounding against the door, suddenly filled with foreboding.

Calm, calculated steps began to grow steadily closer. Marie backed away from the door, eyes scanning for anything within that could be used as a weapon. A sudden, pulsating blast slammed against the doorway, and the veterinarian had to shield her face from the sudden onslaught of debris. When she finally took her arms away, she found Bialian soldiers coming towards her, rifles at ready.

In all honesty, it would take more than guns to scare the woman who married Rick Logan, but before she could retaliate, they had brought her down, holding her arms in a vice like grip that demanded she move where they wanted her too, else the pressure would snap her ulna.

Thrusting her in front of them, they marched her up to the deck, where she had to turn away at the blinding sunlight. As one they knocked her off balance, throwing her to the boat floor. Vaguely she heard a muffled call of 'Marie!'.

"Ah, Mrs. Logan. So good of you to… join us."

The woman looked up, defensive anger hardening her features. Before her stood a pasty white man, the hood and strong sunlight obscuring most of his features. Turning away from the slight form, her eyes scoured the deck, searching for Hutchison, the captain, _her husband_. There were at least three bodies lying deathly still on the deck, only one of them Bialian. There were bullet holes on the ground, in the walls and rails, not to mention the telltale scorch marks made it look like something had begun burning but had been put out on the far side of the deck. At last she found the remains of the crew, all encircled by various Bialian soldiers, guns trained on their panicked forms. Admist them, one of the men was clutching his leg, blood dripping out despite the effort to stop it. "Rick!" She called out, horror struck.

"Mrs. Logan, now really isn't the time for dramatics."

She turned to face the pasty man again, seeing as he was the only one acknowledging her. "I won't even try to be cute with you, just tell me where Hutchison is so I can cut him a new one." The man chucked quietly, the action irking her on even more. "Is the coward hiding? The scum won't even make an appearance as he tries to tear my family apart?"

The man came closer, and with a start Marie noticed a strange pink texture hiding under his hood. She had a brief thought to what it could be but… it couldn't be. "You misunderstand me, my dear. Hutchison is no longer apart of this. _I _have taken over management of locating your son."

Marie glared fiercely at him. "I'll tell you _nothing_."

His grin turned into a smirk. "I expected as much, but you needn't worry. For you see, I already _know_."

She turned towards her husband, horrified.

"Oh no no no. I have much less blasé means of gaining such information." He turned away, walking towards the military boat that was anchored to theirs. "I believe we have a plane set for Fawcett City to apprehend. Move out."

As one, almost eerily in sync, the soldiers withdrew back to their own vessel.

**XXX**

P'Simon turned to the final soldier to cross. "Is it done?"

"Yes, sir." The man stared at him with an unusually blank expression, nothing more than a puppet.

"Good." He glanced back to the boat, watching the woman who was making her way to her husband. "Let's not take any chances, hmm? Once we're out of range, fire our missiles at it."

"Yes, sir."

**XXX**

The moment they were free, Marie rushed back to her husband. "Rick! Rick, are you hurt, what happened?"

"Marie, I heard what he said to you. But I _swear _I never told him!"

Marie frowned back towards the receding boat, the still able crew helping up the injured. The strange pink substance she saw atop his cranium causing a sick shiver to run through her. "I think I know, but it doesn't matter, we have to get to Garfield!"

The captain came over, his eyes looking a little wild. "Mr. Logan, you and your wife must get to the life preserves immediately!"

Rick turned to him, eyes wide. "What's going on now?"

"They've jammed the transmitter, and broken our navigation system! I can't control the vessel! It's heading us down the wrong course; we'll be swept over in rapids in a matter of minutes!"

"Captain!" A shorter man looked at him wildly, panic stricken. "They've cut off our life boats!"

Rick clutched his wife to him, feeling her tremble as they thought the same thing: they weren't going to make it to Garfield.

"Captain! The military is firing at us from the rear!"

The Logans turned to see that he spoke the truth, the captain let out a string of profanities, trying to get his terrified crew under control. From aboard the deck, they watched as a heavy artillery was positioned towards their ship, locking on them.

Marie watched, numb with shock, as the missile shot towards them. All she could think of was her beautiful, little green boy. Whom she and Rick only wanted to protect. And now, they wouldn't be able to protect him any longer. She clung to her husband, her sons smiling and carefree face echoing through her mind. "Garfield…"

Then the missile hit.

**XXX**

P'Simon smiled in satisfaction as the boat exploded, the remains heading for the unforgiving rapids that would surely chew up everything beyond recognition. Turning back to the pale faced captain, he focused back on their goal. "Get your commander on the line, we need to set up a welcoming party for Garfield Logan."

**Guys… I swear I'm not normally this angsty. But, in Wikipedia, BB's parents really do die via boating accident, so I just took boating accident to a whole new level… you might want to read some fluff after this, just to feel better.**

**Now that Beast Boy's a character, hopefully I can tag this story with him soon.**

**:D Please review! I wanna know what you think!**


	4. And Into the Fire

Radar led the nervous Garfield through the last of security towards the waiting area for families picking up international flights. The flight had been eight hours long, and it took another hour to go through airport security. Luckily Marie had given Radar the correct documentation for getting Garfield, who was not only a minor, but also not his biological relative, through the FCIA security. There had been a couple awkward questions when he had to take off the hoody Radar gave him and had to reveal his green skin, but phrases like 'skin deficiency' and 'seeing some of Star Labs best' got them out of it mostly unscathed.

"Hey Ray?" Garfield glanced around at the huge building, admiring all the shop windows and their displays.

"Yeah Garfield?"

"Is my skin really that weird?"

Not hearing anything from his guardian, Gar peaked up from under his hoodie and saw the man trying to avoid eye contact. "It's not- uh, I guess it's a little weird since I knew you… before. It's just that it's… green."

"Yeah?" Garfield prodded, still not really understanding. _Miss Martian _was green, and she was amazing! So why was it when he turned green, everyone either treated him weird or wanted to hurt him? Except his parents, of course, and Ray.

But… what if Rita didn't want to help him 'cause he was green?

"Look, Garfield, what would you think if I… suddenly grew shark fins and… could bite through metal?"

The little boy looked towards the ceiling, trying to imagine Ray stopping a runaway plane by chomping down on the engine with his teeth. "That… would be _awesome_!"

"Ugh, okay, so that scenario isn't going to work…" They lapsed into an uneasy silence, listening to the droning announcements of canceled and delayed flights.

Garfield looked back to his family's friend. "Hey Ray?"

"Yeah Garfield?"

"What if Rita thinks my skin is weird too, and won't help us?"

Radar looked down at the boy, surprised. Gar was trying to look brave, and casually curious, but he could see the underlining worry in his eyes. Christ, he hadn't thought of that either. Did this chick even know? Had Marie warned her?

"Uh…" He looked forward and realized they had come to their destination. "Well, I guess we're about to find out." _God, I hope they take him, as much as I love the Logan family, there's no way I can stay in the states with him, and Marie would kill me if he came back to Quarac…_

**XXX**

Garfield Logan immediately knew it was Rita. The brunette was older, and had _maybe _a few smile lines, but she was beautiful, a mature version of the pretty girl he had seen in the photo with his mom. It made him feel instantly shy, and he pulled his hood down further to obscure his face. There was a man standing beside her that Garfield didn't recognize, a friend maybe? Or her husband?

When he and Radar were about ten feet away they stopped uneasily, not sure whether to move forward or not. Gar wasn't too keen on going closer; the man was staring at him really intently, like he was trying to figure him out. Kind of like the scientists back home.

Rita was the first one to break the tense atmosphere, walking up to the eight year old and giving him a big hug. "Garfield, it's so good to see you!" She leaned away, trying to peer under his hood. "The last time I saw you, you were just-" She broke off with a gasp, pulling his hood back a bit to reveal dark green hair, green eyes, and green skin. "G-Garfield?"

The man who had been standing with her tensed slightly, his eyes widening as he took in the boys strange color.

Garfield shrunk in on himself, not sure what to do. "Um… so I guess this means mom didn't tell you _why _I was coming?"

Rita's beautiful features furrowed into a confused frown. "Er, Marie mentioned that things were becoming dangerous for you back home…"

Realizing he was drawing stares again, the eight year old meekly stepped away from her and drew up the hood. "Sorry, I didn't realize it was so weird. After my skin changed color, mom didn't let me leave the house. I didn't think…" He couldn't finish the sentence, his eyes becoming somewhat tortured. He didn't think it was that horrible. He didn't think it was that bad of a thing. He didn't think people would be _afraid _of him, come _after _him.

Something in Rita's face shifted, gently grabbing hold of one of his hands. "I understand what you mean. Superheroes are a natural part of the states, but people are still shocked now and then to see one in civilian clothing."

"Hero?" Gar brightened, taking to the idea. "You think I look like a hero? Could be a hero?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." The man from before walked forward, still seeming serious, but now there was an amused glint in his eyes. "In the mean time, we should probably head home."

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry Garfield!" Rita stood next to the man, her fingers intertwining with his. "This is my fiancée, Stan Dayton." She smiled well naturedly. "He can be a stick in the mud, but I promise he won't bite."

"Rita." The man scowled lightly, smiling at his lover's tease. Looking back to Garfield, "Sorry, but we're actually running late for a meeting, so we need to get going now."

Garfield nodded his head vigorously, the Stan guy _did _seem a bit gruff, but he was nice enough. Suddenly remembering Radar, he turned back and ran to him, embracing the long-time friend. "I'll see you again, right Radar?" Green eyes searched the Quarac citizen hopefully. He didn't want to keep saying good-bye to everything; he had to know that he'd at _least _get to see Radar again. "When my parents come, we'll come see you, okay?"

The man smiled kindly at the eight-year-old, ruffling his hoodie good-naturedly. "Duh! Of course I'll see you crazy Logan's again. Where would my life be if your family didn't make it interesting?" He winked at the kid conspiringly. "If I have time, I'll stop by the reserve to check on Monkey for you, how 'bout that?"

"You would? Awesome!" Giggling, the boy gave him one last squeeze, "Thanks again Radar!" quickly letting go, ignoring the sad feeling in his chest, he hurried back to the waiting couple. _I'll see him again, _Garfield told himself with certainty; _when mom and dad get here, we'll go see him together, for sure!_

Stan glanced around when Garfield came back over. "So, where are your bags?"

"Oh, uh…" the green boy looked down, rapidly feeling abashed. "I don't have any. We… kinda left in a hurry."

Rita's frown came back, but Stan just nodded, all business once again. "Alright, then let's get going, we can stop by a store and grab the essentials until your parents get here." He cocked his head slightly, smiling at the wide eyed youngster. "You know, something tells me you have a big story to share."

Gar laughed slightly as he stepped in line with them, walking towards the exit. "You don't know the half of it."

**XXX**

As the trio walked passed some of the waiting passengers, a sharp set of eyes watched them carefully. He had been given a picture to identify the pilot, the Quarcian who was now heading back to his plane. But his real target was the small, bouncing child eagerly asking all about Fawcett City. When they passed him he looked down to his baggage, rummaging for an apparently lost laptop power cord. After they were out of ear shot, he glanced back up to see the couple and child continuing on their way, towards parking. Casually flicking open his phone, the nondescript man glanced at his watch as if waiting for a plane's arrival.

A clipped voice sounded from the other end. Cold and brittle. "Report."

"Our target dropped off the kid, he's been picked up by an unfamiliar couple. A woman with auburn hair, medium height, and a tall graying man. No sign of any other person belonging with the group, other than the pilot that dropped him off."

Another static voice played over the phone, also speaking to the leader. "Team B has them in their sites, heading to parking ramp 4."

Further voices jumped in as well. "This is Team 3 checking in; I have them in my sights. Target is getting into a maroon SUV, license plate number 429-TDP."

"Affirmative, tracing the cars numbers now, we'll have the results in two minutes, tops."

"'Hobo' from Team 3 has bumped into the car, tracer is in place."

"This is command team affirming that tracer is active, should we begin pursuit?"

The man shivered slightly as the cold, dangerous voice played over the line once again, silencing all the others. "Keep them monitored, but no active pursuing. Not until we have knowledge of the target's current carriers.

All teams hurry to rondevu point to begin phase two."

"Affirmative." Echoed several voices.

The man casually closed his phone, once again checked the time, then hurried off, only vaguely thinking back to the strange little boy who had become a target for such a notorious group.

**Sorry it's taken so long to get this out guys, I've been way focused on my other story, 'Possession'. Also, I was kinda hoping they'd have a Beast Boy character tag by now, what's with the slow poke in adding season 2 characters? :/**

**:D Hope you enjoyed! Thanks so much to everybody who has reviewed thus far! And yes, just so you know if this chapter confused you, Gar's parents are dead, I don't plan any miracles are going to occur with them. :'(**


	5. Not Safe Yet

"_Garfield."_

_The green child turned from where he was playing with Monkey in the trees to see his mom waiting for him on the porch. His face broke into a huge grin. "Mom!"_

_Jumping down from the tree he race back over to his house. "Where's dad? Did you guys get here alright?"_

_Marie didn't answer, merely smiled at her son and leaned down, stroking his cheek affectionately. "My baby boy…"_

_Normally Gar would immediately recoil at being 'babied' like that, but he didn't pull away, instead leaning into the touch, instantly soothed by his mom's presence. "I'm glad you guys got to the states okay, I was worried!"_

_She smiled sadly, not responding but instead pulled him into a protective hug. "I love you Garfield."_

"_Rita's pretty," Garfield continued, glancing up from his smothered view-point, "and she's really nice, mom! She saw that I was green and didn't even freak! Well, okay, she kinda did, but she's not scared of me! And Stan is a nice guy too!"_

_She pulled out of the hug, going back to petting his head. "I'm glad, I know they'll protect you."_

_Garfield grinned in confusion. "They don't need to protect me, especially now that you're here…" and it suddenly occurred to Garfield that he wasn't in Fawcett City, but back on the preserve. "Mom, why are we here?"_

_Monkey scurried up onto his shoulder, giving a brief cry of affection before jumping onto his mom's shoulder. Marie smiled somewhat sadly. "Your father's coming too, I came a bit sooner than he did."_

_Garfield looked at her, bemused. "What do you mean? What happened to Fawcett City?"_

"_You know I love you, don't you Garfield?" Marie looked earnestly into his eyes, blatantly ignoring his question._

_Garfield frowned at his ignored question, but answered. "Of course I know you love me, mom!" He hugged her again, squeezing her with all his might. "You said you'd love me, no matter where I was or what I became, I remember."_

"_I love you." She repeated, and Garfield realized with a jolt that her voice sounded wobbly, sad. Was Marie crying, like she had before he got on the plane? "I love you so much Garfield."_

"_I love you too, mom." Garfield didn't know what else to say, but it felt like something more needed to be said. "I know you'll always love me just like I'll always love you."_

_Marie pushed away, tears in her eyes. Monkey crooned from her shoulder sadly. "Good-bye, Garfield." Before he could respond, she pushed him off the porch; Monkey's shriek the last thing he heard as he started falling towards the ground-_

The green child jerked awake in the back seat as a car next to theirs honked in irritation, the other city sounds soon intermixing with it. It took a moment for Gar to realize he was still in the car with Rita and Stan. And Stan, noticing the boy's sudden awareness, looked back at him in amusement. "Don't worry kid; we're almost back to the pent house. You were conked out there for a good chunk of time."

"I was?" Garfield asked blearily, shaking his head to get rid of the last remnants of sleep. He had been dreaming, but he couldn't remember what about. He felt like Monkey had been in it though, and something to do with the Savannah…? Well, it wasn't important anyway. How could he fall asleep during his first ride in a big city? "So do you guys get to see Super Heroes all the time?"

Rita laughed softly, turning around so she could converse with the boy. "Now why would you think that?"

"You guys live in the States! Not only that, you live in a big city!" Garfield threw his hands in the air dramatically, like it was obvious. "America gets _all _the good heroes! Superman, Green Lantern, Batman, Miss Martian…" The boy continued to ramble off.

"Well," Stan interrupted with a smile still dancing on his features. "We don't see much of them; Fawcett City is in pretty decent order. Though this is Shazam's city."

"Who's Shazam?"

"A Superman wannabe."

"Dear," Rita grinned at her fiancée, turning back to the Logan boy, "he's a lesser known hero, though his powers are similar to Superman's. Who knows? Maybe you'll see him while you're here."

"Maybe, but don't count on it." Stan cut in again, maneuvering the car into a parking ramp. "He's lesser known because he doesn't go up against a lot of big baddies. Though I'm not complaining, the _last _thing this city needs it a Superman class rogue gallery."

Garfield was about to ask more about it, but was cut off as Rita called out in a sing-song voice. "We're here!"

Gar looked around at the dank parking lot. "No we're not!"

Rita laughed slightly. "Well, we're almost, just up the elevator." Thus saying, she departed out of the car, making sure to grab the shopping bag full of necessities for the young boy while he stayed with them a few nights.

Carefully, the green boy readjusted his hoodie so he wasn't exposed again, quickly hiding his hands in his pockets as he got out of the car. Dan watched shrewdly, Garfield's hoodie blocking the sympathetic expression on his face. As the three of them crossed the lot and entered the elevator, Stan took note of an individual slinking away towards the entrance, ignoring them. There was nothing about his appearance that was troubling, but Stan felt a frown form on his face all the same.

Oblivious to Gar and Rita's chatter, he watched the man until the elevator doorway closed completely.

**XXX**

After they had gotten into the apartment and shown Garfield around (who frequently made comments along the line of 'it's so big!' and 'you guys live here by yourselves?' and 'can I play with that?'), they had sat down to discuss why Garfield had come in the first place.

At first, the boy had been a bit reluctant in his telling, beginning with how he had first met Megan and her part in saving his life. But with Rita's soft encouragement and Stan's attentive interest, they finally got the boy worked up into telling them every detail with childish glee. "And then mom and dad decided it'd be safer for me to take the plane home instead of with them. So Radar picked me up, flew me here, and you know the rest!" He gestured to his green skin for emphasis, the hoodie being taken off long ago.

"I can't believe you were essentially driven out of Quarac." Rita shook her head in disgust. "You never should have been exposed to that, Garfield. Some people, they don't even see us- people like you, I mean, as real humans anymore."

Garfield fiddled with his T-shirt, trying to ignore the ache in his stomach that knew Rita was right. "Well, not _all _people are like that. My parents aren't. _You _guys aren't." He smiled happily at them. "And you know, I think I'm technically part Martian now, which is _so _cool!"

Stan shook his head in amazement. Whereas Rita had listened to the story with motherly horror, and though Stan was appalled as well, he was fascinated by Gar's transformation. "You can really change into any animal?"

"I'm not sure." Gar sheepishly ducked his head. "I think so, but I haven't tried them all yet."

"How many have you done so far?"

The green boy looked towards the ceiling, beginning to count off on his fingers. "Um… I think something like fifteen? Seventeen?" He looked back at Stan. Unlike the other scientists, who had either been trying to cure his problem or _that _scientist that tried to hurt him, Stan was only interested in accepting him, and seeing how he could better understand Gar's gifts in order to help him. "It's not always easy, if I don't know a lot about the animal, I have a hard time concentrating into turning into it. I think that's why turning into a monkey is so easy, because I played with Monkey so much back home. But…" He glanced out the window at the twilight scenery, thinking of his parents. "When I turned into the wolf, that had been easy, even though I'd never done it before…"

"It's probably connected to your reaction time, and your desperation." Stan subtly laid a hand on Rita's knee. "A lot of times we find power from within we didn't know we had when the situation is desperate enough. I believe you have a lot of potential with your gifts, Garfield." Rita nodded her head in agreement.

Garfield felt a smile bloom on his face. He hadn't known Stan for long, but he was kind of like Radar's boss, someone who didn't give out compliments often. And when he did, it was best to pay attention. "You really think so Mr. Dayton?"

Stan nodded thoughtfully. "I do, in fact, when your parents arrive to the states, I think we should discuss with them if you can't stay with Rita and me for a time. You see, me and a fellow associates are forming a group we're currently calling the Doom-"

A loud knock to the door cut the man off, and the trio turned to look at the doorway. The knock came again.

"Who could that be?" Rita frowned in confusion. "It's nearly eight in the evening, were you expecting someone dear?"

Stan frowned. "No, I wasn't. Garfield," He glanced towards the boy even as he walked up to the door. "Why don't you go upstairs to your room for now, just in case."

Garfield wilted slightly, reminded that not everyone accepted his strange appearance. "Okay…"

A third bang sounded on the door. "I'm coming! Calm down!" Stan called agitatedly. Rita stayed seated at the couch, her stomach twisting uneasily. Stan peaked through, finding a delivery man with a package. Brusquely he unlocked the door and began swinging it open. "Yes, yes, how can I help- ARGH!" the man was thrown back as the delivery man bodily flew into him, sending him to the ground.

Garfield, who had almost been to his room, hurried back down the steps in time to see a swarm of uniformed men invade the living space.

Rita was immediately on her feet, her lithe form dodging the punches and grabbing hands while also taking out the few that came near her. Stan was on the ground, wrestling with the delivery man. Garfield watched in horror as one man snuck around the actress, a tazer in hand. He rushed a few more steps down, intending to tackle the man. "Rita, behind you!"

Swiftly Rita turned and punched the man's lights out, but she wasn't the only one to have heard his warning. A uniformed man, still in the doorway, turned and faced him. "There's the boy! Apprehend him at all costs!"

"Oh no you don't!" Stan finally kneed his assailent in the stomach, rolling him off him and grabbing a nearby bronze sculpture as a weapon. "Rita, we're going to need Elasti-Girl for this one!"

Garfield watched in shock as Rita suddenly expanded and grew twice her normal size, punching out a few men who happened to storm through and then grabbing a downed one and throwing him at the remaining attackers. "Garfield Logan, you run upstairs and lock your door until we come get you!" One of the men snuck past her, reaching for Garfield's frozen form. But before he could even get close Rita's arm grew out and grabbed him, hurtling him into the far wall. "_Go _Gar!"

Snapping out of his shock, the young boy raced up the stairs, adrenaline pumping through him as the sounds below escalated. He had briefly seen Stan reach for a helmet that had been on the mantel, probably intending to use _that _as a weapon too. Should he stay and help? No, Rita told him to go upstairs. And Rita- He entered and locked his door quickly, suddenly engulfed in darkness, the noises fading into the background of his frantic breathing. Rita was a meta? Was she a hero? Or- or could she be a _villain_? No, no way. But he'd never heard of a hero like her before…

His eyes widened as he heard a brief scream from Rita and Stan, then an almost hushed quiet. "Uh oh…" Had they- could they have just-? _And what are they going to do if they find me? _Garfield looked frantically around the guest bedroom, trying to find a place to hide without success. Multiple feet were coming up the steps. Where could he go? _What could he do_?He backed away from the door as the knob jiggled, then when it didn't give; whoever was on the other side began to ram it. "Go away!" He yelled fearfully, eyes still scanning the room until they finally settled on his last option; the window.

There was a pause in the ramming. "Open the door, boy!"

He ignored them, running over to the window and hastily trying to find a way to open it. There were none. What had he expected? They were forty-eight stories up!

The ramming resumed after he failed to respond, and the door seemed to bend more with each passing hit.

Garfield banged on the window, briefly wondering if he screamed someone outside would hear him. _Forget it, I can't break it this way. _He forced himself to calm down, thinking back to his animal book. _What could break the glass… _Inspiration coming to him, his limbs mutated till he was on all fours and growing thick fur. The mountain goat backed up a few steps before charging the glass panel.

It shattered at first hit. Those horns were harder than he had thought. Quickly visualizing himself as a human he changed back and broke away the remaining glass so he could stand on the sill.

Wow, he was _really _high up.

He felt a wave of vertigo assult his already panicked systems. Living in the Savannah with his parents, the highest he'd ever been on a building was the barn rooftop, which couldn't have been more than two stories. _This is a lot higher than two stories… _And it didn't seem like there was any way to get out from here either! No ledges, no people to call to. How was he going to get away?

"Kid, freeze!"

_Oh no! _Garfield whirled in panic, seeing the men break through the door. However, he spun too quickly, and his momentum caused him to lose his balance.

Throwing him out of the forty-eighth story window.

**XXX**

"He _what_?"

"Our target… managed to evade us, sir."

"And exactly _why _did a _child _manage to get away from a group of _elite mercenaries_?"

"Sir, we posted no men on perimeter buildings, nor were any window spotters placed."

The Commander grit his teeth, trying to keep from ordering the man's termination. Not until the man _at least _finished this horrid report. "And if I may ask, _why _was there no posting for such scenario?"

He turned and found the man was sweating bullets, a look of horror on his face. So he realized his position after this failure. Good. "S-Sir, we were under the impression that we were apprehending a child with potential genetic abilities. However, there were no specifications as to the nature of these abilities. He is a minor with no known physical or mental excelling, and no connection to the League or any law enforcement. We also kept in mind that he was over forty stories high."

The child leaped from that high? Well now, P'Simon really caused a stir for whoever this was. Or perhaps the boy was merely farther along in his new abilities than they had first considered. He turned towards the window once again, looking out over the city. "And do we have a clear notion of what he… became?"

"Team C burst into the room as he fell and… changed. They report it appeared to be a pigeon."

"A pigeon." He whirled on the man, ready to call in his guards to dispose of the waste in front of him. "And pray tell, commander, how should I find a _pigeon _in the middle of a city harboring more than three hundred thousand?"

"H-He was also reportedly, green, sir."

He narrowed his eyes dangerously, testing for any loose words. "Green."

"Yes sir, the very same color as when the kid is in his… human form."

"Hmm…" Once again he turned back to his window, smirked when he heard the commander's inaudible sigh of relief. "Well, we've lost a great opportunity, and our benefactors will certainly be _disappointed_." Infuriated would be a better word. "But I can see you're eager to salvage the situation. Begin the search process. I want this meta hunted down and captured _before _we get the authorities involved." He listened as the steps hastily drew away from him. "And," Blast it, what was the wretch's name? "Derkins?"

"Yes, sir?"

"I do not tolerate failure a _second _time."

"Y-Yes sir."

**So… yeah… I know it was fast paced… but you guys have been waiting, right? So your okay that it came out like it did, right? BTW, this chap is dedicated to Noah Rhodes, who's been pushing to see it updated. **


	6. Take Me Home

When those men had first attacked Garfield at Rita's home and he had fallen out the window, he had transformed on instinct. Senses overwhelmed with panic and fear, he had flown desperately through the city, heedless of where he was going. He didn't even remember much of his first night in the city, all he knows is he had somehow managed to evade the bad guys and land on a strange rooftop somewhere where he fell asleep and woke up in his human form just as the sun was rising. He had been scared, confused, and had literally shivered on that rooftop from the morning dew crying at the vague impressions of what had happened the night before, hoping his mom would miraculously appear and comfort him, letting him know that everything was alright, that _he _was alright. He felt sick thinking of the screams he had heard from Rita and Stan, those horrible sounds echoing as the last real memory before the adrenaline flight for his life and collapse from exhaustion.

But no one came for him under that concrete overhang on the five story building. And once his tears ran out, he knew he had to find help. What happened wasn't supposed to happen. Those people weren't supposed to hurt Rita and her fiancée, and they weren't supposed to be after _him_. He needed to find someone who could help, but who? Still feeling exhausted despite just waking up, Garfield focused until he transformed into a bird again and flew down to the street level. The city was just waking up, and he hurriedly transformed to normal and ran out in search of someone who could help.

Hurrying down the sidewalk, he saw an older boy on the other side riding his bike in the opposite direction. _He can help! _"Hey!" Garfield jumped into the middle of the street, waving frantically. "Hey, wait! Stop!"

The boy saw him and his jaw immediately dropped, his hands swerving unthinkingly until he steered himself straight into a pile of trash cans. Garfield cried out in shock at the boy's fall and went to hurry over, but the sound of a blaring horn made him turn and stop in his tracks. A car that was rushing down the street skidded to a stop inches from him, the person inside the car having the same gobsmacked expression as the boy had had. _They can help! They can help Rita! _"Sir! Please, I need your help!" Garfield rushed to the driver's side of the car, trying to open the door. "Please, help! Someone tried to hurt-"

"_Get away_!" The man ripped the opening door out of the boy's hands and slammed the door shut, hitting the accelerator and careening off down the road. Garfield moved to chase after it. Rita needed help! He had to find _someone _who could help!

Hearing a gasp from the other side of the road he saw a woman walking her two children, staring at him with wide eyed horror. _A mom! She'll help me! _"Ma'am, please," he hurried over to her, "You need to call the police! Last night, there were these men-"

"S-stay back, kid." The woman clutched her children more tightly, pushing them slightly behind her. "Don't come closer! Christ- what in God's name are you sick with?!"

_Sick? _Garfield didn't understand. What was she talking about? He wasn't _sick_, he was scared! Those men could be anywhere! And he still didn't know if Rita was okay!

The little girl who was hidden with her brother behind the woman peeped out. "Mommy, why's he _green_?"

Gar froze at her words. She said green the way his mom would say _gross! _Or _ew!_. As if recalling how he really looked, he glanced down to his fully exposed arms. He had left his hoodie in Rita's guest bedroom, and had only one sock on. He hadn't even noticed in his frantic efforts to get someone's help.

_What's so weird about my skin? Why do they get scared? _With a jolt he looked up and realized that the woman was rapidly backing away from him. "Wait! Don't go!" Garfield moved towards her, his hands spread out in the way his mom showed him to approach weary animals in the sanctuary. "It's not what you think, there's nothing wrong with me!"

The little boy jumped forward slightly, still held in his mom's crushing grip. "Stay away from my mommy you, you freak!"

Garfield looked into the angry eyes of the little boy and felt like someone had punched his gut. _Freak_?

"Lucas, don't go near him!" The woman tugged viciously until the boy was forced behind her again. She turned a cold glare at him. "I don't care what you say, something's not right with you, don't touch my family!"

The foreign boy took a step back, shocked at the anger in her tone. "But- Rita needs help-"

"Then call the police!"

"I-I don't have a phone!" But the woman was hurrying her children away again, casting threatening glances over her shoulder to make sure he wasn't following.

_Why? _Garfield tuned in the whispers around him and realized he had gathered an audience of gawkers, all of them looking shocked and unhappy about him being there. The boy who fell in the trash cans had his phone out and was taking pictures. _Why is it bad that I'm green? _

"Get out of here, brat!" An old man yelled from behind his fence at the gathered crowd. "Stop causing a ruckus or I'll call the police and have you sent straight to juvie, ya weirdo!"

Garfield didn't stay after that comment. He bolted away down an ally, swerving through the maze of the city to get away. The people's expressions told him everything he needed to know. He wasn't going to find help, they didn't care what happened.

They couldn't see past his green skin.

Twice more in the day he tried approaching someone, each time with a worse result. Garfield ended up wandering the streets for days. He learned quickly that the more people saw him as a green human, the meaner they were. Staying safely hidden as an animal meant less grief and chances of people hurting him. When it became clear he couldn't find anyone to help him, he tried to find his way back on his own. Maybe he could still find Rita, maybe! But Gar was hopelessly lost in a city he had no recollection of. Even when he soared in the air, the panic of that night completely blurred any memory he had of familiar safety, even finding the airport proved impossible for him.

The changling had raided some garbage cans when he was desperate enough and drank from the occasional fountain at night, but other than that had eaten very little. He had also learned to adapt his image to what the city dogs looked like, and was currently wandering quietly through the alley ways. It hurt Gar that the animals reacted to him much the same way the humans did. They yowled and barked at him, furious that his smell didn't match his appearance, that he didn't understand their territory or food rights. He had tried asking for their help as well, and had gotten several nips and scratches for his efforts. Now he slunk through the alley, not even thinking of finding Rita's home anymore as much as finding _something _to eat. He didn't like this anymore. He didn't want to be green, he didn't want to be in America, he didn't want to have cool powers. He wanted his dad, and his mom, he wanted them to hug him and tell him it wasn't real.

He wanted to go home.

"Holy crap! Digger, do you see that? It's green!"

Beast Boy turned slightly at the exclamation to see three rough looking teens at the far end of the ally, gawking at him. He stared at them, feeling his gut sink and wondering if he should run or hide.

"What the eff is it?" The boy with red dreadlocks roughly elbowed his friend. "Think it's natural?"

"Don't be a retard, Spike." The boy who had spoken first had a slight slurring to his voice, like he was sleepy or dizzy and Garfield didn't understand why. He took a large swig of something in a bottle and then threw it to the ground, causing Gar to yelp fearfully as the glass shattered. The liquid had a strong smell he couldn't really place, it didn't smell too good either. "Y'know, even if the stupid mutt _is _dyed, I can think of a few suckers who'd pay money for it thinking it's the real deal."

The other two looked at one another before grinning and turning back to Gar. "You got a point there, Digger. Dumb mutt could be worth something; maybe even some of the guys at the university would want a new lab-rat to experiment on."

Gar's animal instincts were kicking in, telling him _danger_, _danger_. Whining quietly, he unconsciously tucked his tail between his legs, ears drooping more as he tried to look smaller.

The dreadlocks boy looked over Gar. "Dumb thing looks on the skinny side. Hey- give me the rest of that chicken bone." He grabbed a picked clean chicken bone from the capped boy's hand, waving it dramatically in front of him and whistling. "Hey! Hey dog! Here boy! Wanna bone? Doggy wanna bone?"

Garfield whimpered and backed up further. Yes, he _did _want a bone, but he didn't trust them. They looked like some hyeanas he had once seen on the Savannah; gleefully ready to send the killing blow.

The boy waved the bone in a more jerking manner as he watched the dog step back, frustrated. "No, you stupid mutt! Come _get_ the bone, don't go away from it." He took some steps further, but Garfield quickly retreated. The boy paused, growling under his breath. "The hell? The tiny moron's half dead and he won't take a bone? No wonder its dying."

"We'll have to catch it the old fashioned way." The capped boy said with a cynical smile.

Garfield, not willing to see what would happen next and thoroughly terrified, bolted. The boys shouted behind him in surprise and then anger, and he could hear their long strides slowly start to catch his short sprinting ones. "Help!" He yelled out without thinking, letting out a pitiful bark. "Go away! Help! Please!"

He heard the boys yelling and cursing behind him, and getting louder, but he couldn't bring himself to look back. He was absolutely petrified, the memories of Rita getting attacked flashing in his mind. This was happening because he was green, all because he was green. "Mom!" He yapped out brokenly, "Mommy! Help!"

There was a flash of lightning from nearby, and the darkening alleyway before him was suddenly illuminated. It threw crazy shadows of the boys- boys that were only a few feet behind and gaining- but it was because of that lighting he saw it. An old wooden fence blocking off one section of the back road, tall and sturdy save for the cracked and jagged hole at the bottom. A hole he could fit through! _Please_, he shouted mentally, _please let me make it, please! _He felt the graze of one of their hands on his tail, just barely missing. It was getting so hard to breathe, so hard to run, but he was close- _so close_-

_Yes!_

He ignored the cries of outrage from his pursuers, relieved he made it through. But the relief was short-lived. It was a dead end. "No…" He whined out, if he was in human form he would have been sobbing, "No, no, no…" He gasped and turned as a loud bang echoed from one of the teens slamming into the fence.

"It won't budge! Little mongrel gave us the slip!" Garfield whimpered as the one with dreadlocks peaked through the opening. "Hehey! Stupid animal cornered itself!"

"Man, I'm gonna beat that thing when we get a hold of it. Spike, climb the freaking fence and force it out!"

"How, idiot? That thing's topped with razor! I ain't trying that!"

"Are you effing kidding me?"

The boy with dreadlocks stuck his hand in, waving his hand imploringly. "Alright, stupid dog, nice run, now come here. Come here mutt!"

Garfield went and hid behind the only thing available, a trash can. He was shaking uncontrollably now, wanting his mom and dad and wishing he could turn into a human but knowing that wouldn't help and _hating _that he had ever wanted to be this way in the first place! _I wanna go home, _he whined pitifully, barely registering the sudden deep voice and exclamations from the teenagers, or of the drunken voices getting farther away. _I wanna go home. Mommy, where are you? Why didn't you come on the plane with me? Why did you leave me!_

Suddenly, a large bolt of lightly cracked from the sky, landing right outside the fence. Garfield jumped horribly, the flash and crack of thunder momentarily stunning him. Once it cleared, though, he was aware of how quiet it was. Where did the boys go?

A shuffling sound came the fence, and peaking out, Garfield watched in horror as a smaller door he hadn't seen attached to it swung open. Ready to bolt, he was momentarily surprised when a figure he had never seen before passed through, the ice blue eyes scanned the ally until they landed on his shadowed form.

"Hey, are you okay?" The black haired kid raced over to him, and Garfield huddled farther into the shadows, hoping the kid couldn't see him.

"D-Don't come closer! I'm warning you!"

Of course, Garfield was still terrified and in dog form, so this came out as a series of whimpers and yips.

The kid's eyes widened slightly, the shadows hadn't hidden Garfield enough. "Woah, you're green! Just like Miss M!"

Garfield, who had been prepping to change into a rat and make a run for it, paused at the kid's reaction, his shaking subsiding. _He's not mad? He's not scared? Whose Miss M?_

The boy knelt slowly, cautious of the frightened canine. "Hey, it's alright little guy, those meanies are gone now. I won't hurt you." He held out his hand, not showing any aggression. Gar stared at it for a few moments, then his dog instinct getting the better of him, tentatively moved forward, and sniffing experimentally. His senses told him the boy wasn't giving off any aggressive nature towards him, and he had also recently had a hamburger. The green creature looked back up into blue eyes, realizing for the first time that whoever this boy was he was probably around his own age! It didn't seem like the kid was going to hurt him, and right then that's all that Gar cared about. He wagged his tail weakly in relief, glad the fight was over.

The kid smiled. "See? I don't hurt little guys like you!" He backed up and Garfield timidly stepped out of the shadows into the full light. "Wow, you're _really _green. You know," the ten-year-old frowned slightly, "you don't look so good." Garfield glanced at his body and noticed the rough patches of fur and scrapes from when he was fleeing the thugs and fighting other animals. Not sure how a dog would respond, he looked back to the human. The boy was now wearing a frown, his lips forming a pout as he thought out loud. "I don't want to leave you out here on your own; someone's bound to pick on you again. And you could use a good bath, _and _food. But Uncle Dudley…"

_Food? _Garfield whimpered pitifully, the scent of hamburger still fresh in his nose. When was the last time he had eaten? Dang it, he was _so _hungry.

The kid paused when he heard the puppy whine, a sympathetic smile coming onto his face. "Aw, what the heck." He leaned down towards the dog, "Fine, Uncle Dudley's coming home late tonight, so if I can sneak you into my room, and you promise to be quiet, we should be alright." He reached to grab Gar, but the canine backed away, his tail falling still. "Oh," The boy tilted his head to the side, unsure what to do, "well, okay, then you can follow me home!" He got up and moved to the end of the ally, holding open the passage way that- now that Garfield was closer- had been hidden by the trash and garbage cans before. "Come on boy! I know we have some left over nachos in the fridge!"

"Nachos!" Garfield yipped excitedly, hurrying after his new friend with puppy trust. The boy didn't care that he was green, and the boy had food! Besides, any wariness he had at trusting the boy was over-ruled by his distinct desire to _not _stay out where those boys could find him again. And maybe, just maybe after he figured things out, he could finally find his mom.

The black haired boy smiled encouragingly, "Oh boy, it's going to be so fun having a pet dog! I wonder what your name is, do you have a name?"

"Garfield." Garfield barked promptly, then shrunk sheepishly as he realized he was still speaking dog.

"Hmm…" The ten-year-old glanced around, looking for inspiration. "… I like Greenie."

_Greenie? _Gar shook his muzzle, but the kid didn't notice.

"Yeah! Greenie it is then. By the way," the kid looked down at the dog, his eyes twinkling. "I'm Billy."

**Sorry about the wait, Wally's death hit me in the worst way possible, my other stories are suffering because of it too. ;) Now who could this little everyday hero be, hmm?**


End file.
